Nicole Callen
by Sidewinder566
Summary: What do you do when your estranged teen daughter is wanted for murder? Do you believe the police? Or do you trust the drug using teen? When an outside organization enters the picture what do you do? UNDER REWRITE.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note- This is a rewrite. I have decided to change some things, add more details, etc. So the first chapters are currently going to be rewritten. A lot of things will remain the same, I'm just trying to make the story hopefully better. The next chapters are under way. I'm just trying to bring these early chapters up to par. Let me know what you think! Read and Review please!**

* * *

"This is the last batch I am making," said a figure in a hoodie.

"That's not the arrangement we made," said a man in a nice suit and tie.

"I'm breaking the arrangement. Something has come up. I'm done," stated the hooded figure.

"I don't care. Deal with it. You owe me three shipments of the merchandise girl. Do you dare cross me?" threatened the man in a suit.

"This is the last batch I am making. Don't pay me for. But I'm done. End of discussion," said the girl, storming out of an almost empty warehouse. The man pushed his sunglasses all the way up his nose as he laughed.

"There will be consequences little girl. I will make you wish you had never crossed me."

Nicole walked quickly through the streets of San Diego. She was late for curfew but it couldn't be avoided. Knowing her luck her mom would call her probation officer. Nicole sighed. She lived to be a constant disappointment if you asked her mom or stepfather. After all who else had a genius thirteen year old daughter with half a dozen arrests to her credit? She hated her mom and stepfather, but couldn't hate her little seven year old sister.

It took her about thirty minutes to walk through downtown San Diego to arrive at the somewhat suburban house she lived in with her family. On the outside it looked like an ordinary night. The kitchen light could be seen through the curtains. Nicole figured either her mother or stepfather had stayed up to wait on her. A quick glance at her watch told her it was already past midnight. Deciding to get the lecture and possible fight out of the way instead of waiting until morning, Nicole approached the front door of the house, fumbling for her house key. When she found it and inserted it into the keyhole of the door, she frowned. The door was not locked, which was unusual. She pushed past the door and entered the living room. Silence greeted her, not questions about where she's been or yelling at her for being late. She stopped in the doorway of the kitchen. From there she could see the bloody, unmoving bodies of her mother and stepfather. In a panic she took off to her little sister's room.

"Aoife!" yelled Nicole as she threw open the bedroom door.

In the dark room it looked like her little sister was just asleep. Heart in her throat, Nicole flipped on the bedroom light. Her sister's eyes were closed, her arms wrapped around her favorite plushie. Nicole approached the bed and dropped to her knees. She pulled her sister's unmoving body into her arms, and buried her face in her strawberry scented red hair, not caring about the blood now coating her hands and arms.

"You were told there would be consequences for your actions," said a Russian accented voice from the closet.

"Piss off!" yelled Nicole, placing her sister's body back on the bed.

"For a genius you are stupid," taunted the voice as a tall dark haired man exited the closet.

Nicole twirled around, aiming a strike at the man. He caught her punch. She kicked him, forcing him to release her.

"Did you forget I taught you?" laughed the man, drawing a knife from a holster on his thigh.

"Not everything," growled Nicole, crouching down. They moved at the same time, him aiming to stab her arm and her aiming to disarm him. She managed to get control of the knife, but at the cost of a cut on her right arm.

"I will kill you," threatened Nicole.

"I'll have you back. One way or another," said the Russian as he approached her again. The approaching sound of sirens forced him to freeze.

"What will you do now, little genius? They will blame you. You'll be arrested and I'll take you from the system. Or you can come with me willing now," offered the Russian.

"Piss off Nicholas!" snapped Nicole.

"Tick tock little genius," said Nicholas. Nicole swallowed, her mind racing.

"I'll take option three," said Nicole. She rushed Nicholas, going to strike his chest with the knife. He jumped back and she raced past him. She exited the house from the back door and ran in a direction away from the sirens approaching the house.

* * *

A dispatcher for San Diego police department picked up a phone and dialed a number she had been forced to memorize.

"Miss Lang? It's Kim Smith with San Diego police department. You told me to keep you informed of Nicole Callen. She is wanted for three counts of first degree murder of her mother Bianca McClain, her stepfather Jack McClain and her little sister Aoife McClain.

* * *

In Los Angeles a tired Sam Hanna opened his eyes. A glance at the alarm clock on his bedside table told him it was a little after two in the morning. For a second he couldn't remember why he was awake. Then he heard a round of knocking at his front door. He groaned and hid his face in his pillow. Maybe his partner, who was camping out on the couch less than fifteen feet from the door, would answer it. Another round of knocking, this time accompanied by a kick to his shin from his wife. He received that message loud and clear.

"Fine. But if it's a drunk Renko I'm shooting him," warned Sam. His wife made a noise of amusement as Sam threw a shirt on and exited both the bed and bedroom. Another round of knocking.

"I'm coming," said Sam in a slightly raised voice. He did not need to wake up his children at this time of night. His daughter would never go back to sleep. He passed the couch and his partner, who was laying on the couch with an arm over his eyes.

"I know you are not asleep. What if it's for you?" asked Sam. In response his partner put a couch pillow over his face. Sam shot an unimpressed look at his partner but opened the front door himself anyway.

"Yes?" asked Sam to the two uniformed police officers on his doorstep.

"Mister G Callen?" inquired an officer.

"No. G! Door. Guests. Come be social so I can go to bed," called Sam to his partner that had been trying to remain invisible on the couch. Grumbling under his breath, Callen got up.

"Yeah?" asked Callen as he leaned against the door and Sam rubbed his eyes while leaning on the door frame.

"Mister Callen when was the last time you saw or have been in contact with your daughter Nicole?" asked the second officer. Sam's mouth fell open. Callen ignored him.

"Why?" asked Callen, his eyes narrowed as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"We need you to answer the question sir," stated the first officer, his hand shifting towards his holster. Sam tensed. Callen was silent for a moment.

"Seven or eight years ago. Again why?" asked Callen.

"Do you believe she would try to make contact with you?" asked the second officer.

"What is this all about?" asked Sam before Callen lost his patience and did something stupid.

"When was the last time you were in San Diego Mister Callen?" asked the first officer, ignoring Sam's question.

"Hell I don't know. It's been at least two years. I haven't kidnapped my daughter if that is what you are insinuating. If she has ran away from her mother I would help her if she could find me, but I would also alert the authorities I had her," said Callen.

"When was the last time you saw Bianca McClain? Seven or eight years ago? Or more recently?" asked the second officer.

"If you are accusing my partner of something than I'm going to stop you right there and call my boss. Then we can move this questioning elsewhere," said Sam. He didn't like how the officers were tag teaming his partner or where this line of questioning was leading.

"What happened?" snapped Callen. Sam looked at his partner, shocked that Callen had snapped so quickly. He had expected the other man to lose patience and become annoying, like he tended to do when he was bored. This was different. Then it hit him. Callen was worried and possibly scared, two things the man never really was.

"About two hours ago San Diego Police Department arrived at your ex-wife Bianca's house after receiving reports of gunshots and shouting. They forced entry and found Bianca, her husband Jack, and their daughter Aoife dead from gunshot wounds. And right now our most likely suspects are your daughter Nicole and yourself," answered the first officer.


	2. Chapter 2

Nicole walked as calmly as she could in the twenty-four hour gas station. She grabbed hair dye, a small first aid kit, a bottle of hydrogen peroxide, a baseball cap, some beef jerky and some gatorade. She paid the half asleep cashier with gas and the cashier went back to playing with his phone. Nicole went around to the restroom that was outside the gas station. Locking the door, she placed the beef jerky and gatorade into her backpack and left her backpack on the slightly damp floor. She pulled her gray hoodie over her head and tossed it into the sink. She poured hydrogen peroxide on the spots of drying blood. Placing the damp hoodie on top of her backpack on the floor, she thoroughly scrubbed her hands and arms,careful of the scabbing over cut, fighting tears as she removed her sister's blood from her arms. Pulling her long head hair that reached to the middle of her back into one hand, she removed Nicholas's knife from her backpack with the other. After a quick glance at herself in the mirror, Nicole used the knife to cut her hair to neck length, tossing most of the cut hair into the trash can. She then read the hair dye box and applied it as the instructions said. As she waited on the dye to set she munched on the beef jerky and gulped down some gatorade. Her mind was racing with ideas of what to do next.

She could head south to Mexico. It would probably take her less than ten hours to get there if she started walking immediately. There was the issue of not only crossing the border, but the chances of being kidnapped by the cartel was extremely likely. She couldn't count on her grandparents to help her and she had no way of knowing where her father was, so any chance of leaving the country would be almost impossible. Besides her passport was at the house in her room and she knew she would never return to that house. She was pretty sure the cops hadn't notified the ports or airports, because she was a kid and they didn't expect her to try to leave that way. Then again her probation officer had probably told them of her intelligence so while it was unlikely, it was still possible. Once they discovered who her grandparents were they would block those ways of leaving. The cops would also track down her father even though Nicole hadn't seen or talked to him since she was six. Her best bet would be to stay in San Diego she thought as she rinsed out her hair. That done she left the gas station and made her way to an abandoned building. She leaned against the wall while sitting on the floor and rested as much as she could without going to sleep.

* * *

"My partner has been with me since around eight o' clock this morning and we were in Los Angeles all day," explained Sam.

"Do you own a firearm Mister Callen?" asked the first officer.

"I'm a federal agent so yeah I do," answered Callen.

"We need to see it and take it with us for testing," said the second officer.

"No," answered Callen crossing his arms over his chest.

"No?" asked the first officer.

"No. You didn't know I was an agent or owned a firearm so I know you don't have a warrant. Since my partner just told you I have been with him all day it is unlikely you will get one. Is there any more stupid questions or accusations you would like to state? Or am I free to go find my kid since you are apparently too incompetent to?" said Callen. Sam internally groaned.

"Mister Callen is right, officers. I will be having words with him about his conduct, but I don't believe you have anything on my agent. Now if you will excuse us gentlemen, but I believe my agents and I have a trip to San Diego to plan," said Hetty as she appeared behind the police officers. Using the thick folder in her hand, Hetty moved the officers out of her and brushed past Sam and Callen to enter Sam's house. Callen followed her, leaving Sam to deal with the police officers.

"Have a good night," said the smiling NCIS agent as he shut his front door in the faces of the two shocked officers. Sam then went to his kitchen. There he found his wife up and making coffee while Hetty lectured Callen on behavior. His wife shot him a glare, asking for answers. Sam held his hands up to try to calm his wife.

"It looks like we are going to San Diego for a few days," admitted Sam to his wife.

"Why?" asked Michelle. Sam shot a look at Callen.

"My daughter is kind of missing," said Callen as he looked at Hetty and the folder she held.

"What do you mean, kind of missing?" asked Michelle.

"She's wanted by San Diego Police Department and apparently has decided to run," snapped Callen, the tension of the situation getting the better of him. Michelle went quiet. SHe walked up to Callen and squeezed his shoulder, then went to leave the room.

"Good luck. I'll see you when you get back," said Michelle before vanishing into a different part of the house.

"This is her file, Callen. I haven't read it but you should," said Hetty. She handed him the file and he started reading. Sam sipped on the coffee his wife had made and waited on his partner to finish reading the unusually thick file. He was worried about his partner.

Callen couldn't believe most of what he was reading. He skimmed the reports about her extreme intelligence. That he had already knew. What shocked him was the arrest and medical reports. She had had a broken wrist from a suspicious fall. Nicole had had several broken ribs and when pressed, there had been no real explanation given. Then there were the arrests. Two for truancy, three for running away from home, two for possession of drugs, and the last one for assault and battery of her stepfather. She was on probation for the last one possession charge as well as the assault and battery. She had done community service for the other charges.

"I should have kept her," growled Callen.

"Because being a single father and an expert undercover agent would have been so easy," said Sam.

"I would have figured something out. Something that was not how the hell did my daughter get three broken ribs at the age of eight? Or how come when she was arrested for physically fighting with her stepfather I wasn't even notified?" said Callen as he ran a hand through his hair.

"Were your parental rights terminated?" asked Sam.

"No. Hetty knew about Nicole because child support comes out of my check, but I haven't been able to see Nicole in years," answered Callen.

"Isn't that illegal?" asked Sam. Callen shook his head no.

"She can withhold visitation and nothing happen to her. If I withheld child support I'd be thrown in jail and she would have terminated my rights," said Callen.

"Considering Nicole's maternal family why did you even need to pay child support?" asked Hetty. Sam looked confused.

"Because she's my kid," answered Callen with a shrug of his shoulders.

"Well I'm going to go and pack a bag then we can go find your kid. It seems like she's as troublesome as you can be," said Sam, leaving Callen and Hetty to sit in the kitchen.

"Do you think she hates me?" asked Callen.

"No. I think she is unaware of what happened between you and her mother. Do you think she committed these murders?" asked Hetty.

"I'm to the point I don't know what to think. All I know is I want my kid to be safe and me and her to talk. That's all I want right now. Everything else….everything else can either wait or I'll do my best to help her with," said Callen. He got up to go get his own bag packed.

"Mister Callen. We will find her," said Hetty.


	3. Chapter 3

"Alright. It's been three days and nothing," stated Sam as he, Callen, and Hetty sat in a diner for lunch.

"The police did say she was known for disappearing," said Hetty, attention on something across the street.

"But did she have to be as talented as Callen?" whined Sam.

"You've never met her mother," mumbled Callen.

"How did you two met?" asked Sam.

"Job in Ireland. She was full blooded Irish. I was investigating her family," said Callen. Neither man noticed Hetty was gone.

Hetty had noticed a teenager with a ballcap on. With a black t shirt and a gray hoodie wrapped around the waist of her blue jeans, the kid really blended in. Except she was being followed by a man in a suit. The teen and man disappeared in an alleyway. Hetty followed. When she got into the alley, it was empty.

"Imagine my surprise at finding you here, Henrietta Lang," said an accented voice emerging behind Hetty.

"You are far from home Nicholas," said Hetty, tensing at recognizing the man. She turned to face him.

"Ah but I have a job to do. What are you doing here?" asked the Russian.

"A job involving a teenage girl by chance?" asked Hetty.

"Perhaps. Perhaps the boss would settle for your dead body instead of that brat," answered the man. That was the only warning she got as the man leveled his gun at her. He pulled the trigger.

A body jumped from the fire escape above Hetty and landed in front of her. A grunt of pain came from the body as it shoved Hetty back. They then engaged the Russian.

Nicole's shoulder was on fire from the shot. She grit her teeth as she tired to disarm the man. He punched her in the face with his free hand. Nicole headbutted his chest and they struggled with the gun.

"Freeze and drop the weapon," said Callen at the end of the alley. His own weapon was pointed at the man.

Nicole froze briefly. She then shoved the gun into the Russian's face as hard as she could and jumped back up to the fire escape and disappeared again.

"Maybe this man can give us some answers," said Sam.

"We have to turn him over to San Diego police. Our priority is finding her," said Hetty.

Sam grumbled but cuffed the now disarmed man and tossed him into the car. Callen just looked at where Nicole had disappeared.

"She is hurt Hetty?" said Callen.

"Nicholas went to shoot me. She jumped in the way and took a bullet to the left shoulder," answered Hetty.

"If she killed three people, her family, why save a stranger?" inquired Callen.

"He is Russian Mafia, Mr Callen. A high ranking member. He admitted she was his target," stated Hetty.

"Why?" asked the confused Callen.

"That is a question for Miss Callen. Who I suggest we find quickly now that she's hurt," said Hetty.

"Why don't we just call her? San Diego just gave me her file. Her cell phone number is listed," said Sam. An officer had been looking for them and traded the file for the Russian. Callen sighed and took the file. He took out his phone and sent a text.

 _You can't keep running kid. Dad_

 _Wanna bet? I don't have a dad. Mine gave up that right._

 _Damn it Nicole. You are hurt. And I am your dad._

 _Prove it._

 _I gave you the necklace you never take off. It's my wedding ring._

 _Balboa Park at six. Just you. Anyone else and I'll disappear._


	4. Chapter 4

Nicole leaned on the railing by the koi pond. All of her weight was on her right side, her left shoulder useless and burning at the slightest movement. It was painful and why she had her backpack on just one shoulder. As far as she could tell the bullet was still lodged in her shoulder. A hand squeezed it.

"Hurts doesn't it?" asked Callen, leaning beside her.

"Bastard!" said Nicole, almost bent in half over the pain.

"Would you be so kind as to explain all this to me? Because I don't understand," asked Callen. He took her ballcap off and looked at her face. She refused to turn to him.

"Are they really gone?" asked Nicole.

"Did you do it?" fired back Callen.

"Would you believe me if I said yes or no?" snapped Nicole, her voice turning accented.

"No. Because I refuse to believe that not only has my highly intelligent daughter been arrested multiple times but has become a fugitive on multiple counts of murder! One that I have to arrest!" responded Callen.

"I'm a screw up ok! I don't want to be so smart! My sister was the good one! The nice quiet one! But it doesn't bloody well matter now does it? She's dead! And it's my fault!" said Nicole. She raked a hand through her hair as she face her father, who turned white.

"Are you admitting you did it then?" asked Callen in a softer voice.

"I may as well have. It would be my fault either way. So sure. Why not?" said the thirteen year old, slumping in defeat.

Callen couldn't believe it. He really couldn't. Intelligent or not this kid-his kid-had basically admitted to committing murder.

"Nicole..." started Callen.

"Arrest me. You don't get to be a father because of this. I don't need or want your help. Or anyone's for that matter," said Nicole.

"I have to know. Did you kill your mother, step father, and sister?" asked the serious NCIS agent.

Face devoid of any emotion, Nicole looked her father dead in the eye and said plainly, "Yes I did."

He took her backpack off of her shoulder and slung it onto his. Not caring about the bullet wound in her shoulder at the moment he handcuffed her hands behind her back.

"Nicole Callen you are under arrest on suspicion of multiple murders. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you can not afford one one will be provided for you. Do you understand?" said Callen, leading her out of the park and to his car. Inside he was screaming at himself and her.

"Yes," said Nicole. He put her in the backseat, fastened her in and got in the driver's seat. Looking back at her in the rearview mirror he asked, "Why are you doing this?"

Nicole opened her mouth to speak, but before she could she passed out.


	5. Chapter 5

Hetty and Sam watched silently as Callen walked back and forth.

"When she wakes up I'm going to kill her for being stupid," the man mumbled.

He was lucky that Hetty had a safe house here. He was even luckier that she had a doctor friend who would keep quiet about the thirteen year old fugitive with not only a bullet in her shoulder but apparently enough ecstasy in her system to put her in a grave. He was grateful Hetty and the director had negotiated with San Diego so they kept custody of Nicole till the case was solved. Apparently the San Diego coroner had found something that would clear Nicole of the murders. Yet now she would be facing probation violation and possession with intent to sell ecstasy because she had almost fifty pills in her backpack. Finally the doctor emerged from the bedroom.

"She won't lose mobility in her shoulder, that will heal completely. I pumped most of the drugs out of her system. She's also dehydrated. Now she's just sleeping. Doesn't look like she's had much nutrients or sleep in a long time," said the doctor.

"Why not remove all of the drug?" asked Sam. The answer scared Callen.

"If it took that many pills to knock her unconscious then she's had repeated exposure to the drug. My guess is she's been using for quite awhile. If I had removed all of the drug, her body would have went into shock detox, which can kill." explained the doctor.

"So what do we do?" asked Hetty.

"She's going to have to detox. No more pills. I can't give her any meds for the bullet wound because of it. Here's the bullet by the way. If she had been even an inch closer her shoulder probably would have shattered," said the doctor. Before anyone could say anything else, the doctor's pager went off and she ran out the door.

"Mr Hanna call Nate. Explain the situation and tell him he is needed here. If Nicholas is after Nicole, then his organization is involved and also looking for her," stated Hetty.

"But why? Why go after a kid? If they were responsible for her family's death...I don't understand," said Sam, leaving the room to call Nate.

"I have calls to make as well Mr Callen. You should sit with Nicole. She'll probably wake up confused," said Hetty. A couple of hours later Hetty was proved to be correct.

Nicole jolted awake. She didn't recognize her surroundings. She barely realized her arm was in a sling because of her shoulder. The next thing she realized the was running for a bathroom. When she found the bathroom she started throwing up stomach acid. Her hair was held off her clammy skin and she turned to see her father crouching beside her. She was dry heaving. Callen got a wet washcloth and placed it on the neck of her bowed head.

"I need to know what is going on Nicole. You can't smartass your way out of this," said Callen. Nicole sat on the floor, her back against the bath tub.

"I had just turned eleven. I was in the library reading a chemistry. I couldn't stand being at home. Mom blamed me for you leaving. Made sure I knew that and that her husband and other daughter were better. I was trying to find a way just to make my mind slow down. Just a little bit. I knew my grandfather had expectations of me but I just wanted to be normal. Like my sister. Anyway this man saw me. Said he needed an assistant in his lab. Guess he thought I was a college student or something. It would keep me out of the house and out of the way. He gave me what looked like candy," said Nicole. She stopped for a minute to catch her breath.

"Ecstasy?" asked Fallen. Nicole nodded yes.

"It made me happy. Happier than my sis did. It was the happiest I had been since you left. He took me to his warehouse and showed me how to make it. I started making adjustments to it and soon he was praising me for making the purest he had. I was taking more and more. Staying at the warehouse for days at a time. Soon I got arrested for truancy and running away. I just couldn't stay away. Got arrested a few more times and kept getting let go. Then I got caught with pills on me. I got put on probation. Sissy begged me the night before her birthday to stop. That was all she wanted. Her big sister back. I promised her I would stop so I did. And they died because of it," finished Nicole, silent tears hitting the floor.

Callen sat on the rim of the tub beside her. He was stunned.

"You weren't why I left. You were why I stayed. Looking back I should have fought harder to at least keep in contact with you," said Callen.

"Why didn't you?" mumbled Nicole.

"A story for another time. Like when you are way older. But I promise I will. Right now I got to talk to Hetty," said Callen.


	6. Chapter 6

Callen left Nicole to find Hetty. She was in the house's fenced backyard drinking tea at a patio table.

"The Russians want her alive," stated Hetty.

"Frame her for multiple counts of murder so she gets arrested then take her from there..." said Callen.

"They will probably move her out of the country. San Diego can only keep Nicholas away from a phone for so long. Once he makes that call the mafia will know about our involvement and will dig into Nicole's family history. What will they find?" responded Hetty. Callen sighed and sat at the table across from Hetty.

"Nicole is now the only granddaughter of Aidan and Fiona O'Connor. CEO and CFO of the billion dollar O'Connor Whiskey Company and heads of the True IRA," said Callen, looking at the sky. Hetty was shocked and it took a lot to surprise her.

"You had a child with the child of Aidan O'Connor?" asked Hetty.

"Yes. I loved her. I love Nicole. She loved the idea of marriage, freedom from her parents...but not me. I ended up leaving. She filed for divorce and when I started looking for them I found out she had all but completely burned her bridges with her family and brought Nicole here and remarried. I was told that Fiona had taken steps to keep Nicole in Ireland, but they left in the middle of the night," explained Callen.

"So if they found out about this with the Russians?" said Hetty, not bothering to press the man for details.

"Knowing them, war and Nicole's return to Ireland," said Callen.

"Are you sure?" asked Hetty.

"Aidan is ruthless and Fiona is not much better. Disowned or not, Briana was their daughter. Aoife their granddaughter. They will try to take out every last Russian, then make sure nothing can tie the deaths to them," said Callen.

"But how do we stop the Russians without O'Connor finding out and California being a war zone between Mafia and IRA?" asked Sam, who brought two men outside with him.

"Blow it up. Temporarily stalls the Mafia," said the man on Sam's right.

"Renko! We could just set up an arms deal and bust them!" said the man on Sam's left.

"Mr Getz, Mr Renko you both make good ideas. But both are temporary solutions at best," stated Hetty.

"Then what do you suggest we do?" asked Callen.

"Powerful. More money than God. You can't completely shut them down," said Renko.

"We don't shut them down. We give them who they want." said Hetty.


	7. Chapter 7

"WHAT!?" hollered Callen.

"We put a wire on Miss Callen. We track her, and then when she's at the warehouse, you swoop in and arrest everyone. Simple," said Hetty.

"She has a point," said Mike.

"Doesn't solve the problem of the IRA. Plus this child is detoxing and grieving at the same time. It's not the best mental combination," added Nate.

"Lets not use my kid is bait. How about that plan?" snapped Callen.

"We might not have a choice," said Hetty.

"Find an alternative solution," demanded Callen, then he went back in the house.

"Nicole?" called Callen, looking for the teen. He didn't find her anywhere. He entered the bedroom and that's when he saw the note with the necklace on top. It was his wedding ring on a black cord. He started to panic, then read the note.

 _Dear Callen,_

 _I'm so sorry for this mess I created. Because of this my family is gone. I don't deserve you as a father. I never did. I am the only one who can end this. I'll give them what they want. Me. I will accept the consequences of my actions. I'm nothing but a screw up, but maybe my death will make the world a better place. Stay clear of the warehouse. Please. Have a nice life dad. I love you and I'm sorry._

 _Nicole_

Callen swore and glanced at the open window over the bed. The sky had started to darken with storm clouds as Callen's mind raced. Did he dare follow his daughter? Or did he let her face the problem on her own. He was startled out of his thoughts by his cell phone ringing.

"Callen," answered Callen.

"It has been too long Agent Callen. Now, where is my granddaughter?" asks the Irish accented voice of Aidan O'Connor.

Nicole ran through the streets as rain pelted down from the sky. It mixed well with the tears from her eyes. Letting her dad go was the only way to keep him safe. Her facing her mistakes was the only way to keep him safe. She was ok with dying. She didn't have anything to live for her mind reasoned. She burst in to warehouse after throwing her backpack against the outside wall, ignoring the pain in her shoulder from ditching the sling.

"I wondered when you would come around," chuckled the mob boss. He then snapped his fingers and two men grabbed Nicole's arms.

"I'll finish the deal," spat out Nicole.

"Oh you will do more than that," said the boss. Another snap of his fingers. The men let her go and one punched her in the stomach hard enough to make her fall to her knees. The second man grabbed her by her hair.

"You will live here. You will work twenty hours a day. You will never leave here. If you do...well...death would be a relief." commanded the boss.

"Igor, sir...What now?" said the one holding her by her hair.

"Lock her up," commanded Igor, walking away. The two men dragged her to a small room with a chemistry lab. A chain with what looked like a collar on it was attached to the leg of the bolted down table. Nicole was dragged to the table. Her arms were pinned behind her back and her head held against the table while the collar was put around her neck and locked. The men gave her a few more hits then left. She sat on the floor with her back against the table leg. Her mind racing through plans and modifications.

She lit a bunsen burner, a plan forming. The flame got hotter, and Nicole counted down. She threw her hair over one shoulder. She lifted the bunsen burner to her neck and started to burn the collar off. She winced when the heat started burning her neck. After about three minutes the collar fell off, Nicole quickly catching it before it clattered to the floor. She started mixing ingredients then she heard shouting.

"What the hell are you doing here, O'Connor?" demanded a Russian underboss.

"My son in law and I would like a word with Igor," said Aidan. Nicole groaned.

"He is out at the moment. Come back later," snapped the underboss.

"I don't have a later. I barely have a now. My patience grows thin. Get Igor here now. Or later he won't have an operation," said the cool Aidan.

"Are you threatening us old timer?" the underboss demanded to know.

"No. I make promises not threats. Now which will it be? A meeting? Or a show of force?" asked Aidan, snapping his fingers.


	8. Chapter 8

Callen never thought he would be in this position. It had never crossed his mind that he would be walking in to a mob warehouse with his former father in law to get his daughter. Aidan and his five men were calm while the Russians scrambled to find Igor. Finally Igor appeared.

"I heard you found a new chemist," stated Aidan.

"Is that what this meeting is about?" inquried Igor.

"Partly," said the older man, smiling as he lossened his tie.

"I didn't think you were interested in my in house business, O'Connor. I mean I don't appear in Dublin and demand the names of your suppliers of firearms," said Igor.

"Ah. But I heard your chemist left without full delivery and you took retribution. May I ask what the retribution was? After all, old friend, I am curious. We haven't seen each other in years," growled the Irish man.

"I had my men take out her family. She can back today. I guess she learned her lesson," said the Russian.

"Maybe it's time for you to learn one," said Aidan, snapping his fingers. Then an explosion happened in the back of the warehouse, rocking the warehouse. The Irish and Russians engaged in a gun battle, while Callen ducked behind tables ran towards the explosion.

"Nicole!" yelled Callen.

"Why are you here?" coughed the ash covered teen, emerging from the smoking room.

"Gee my kid ran off to join the mob. I wonder what I'm doing here!" snapped Callen.

"Dad..." warned Nicole.

"No! Do you know what you have done?" asked Callen, ignoring her warning. He was surprised when she tackled him to the ground and even more shocked at the gunshot that followed. Nicole landed on top of him. Called saw the Russian mob boss standing over them, then heard another gunshot. He crumbled to reveal Aidan. Callen felt wetness soaking through his shirt. He gently placed her on the floor, the blood coming from the bullet wound in her chest.

"No no no...stay with me kid! Come on. Stay awake!" cried Callen.

"So sorry," said Nicole, her eyes closing.

"Callen...ambulance on its way. We can't stay. Take care of her. I'll be in contact," said Aidan before he and his men disappeared. He was right. EMTs pulled Nicole from him minutes later and within ten minutes Callen was in the waiting room of emergency surgery at UCLA with Hetty and Sam.

"So the Russians are gone?" asked Sam.

"That cell. As is the IRA," answered Hetty as Callen paced.

"Come on G. It's gonna be a while. Pacing is accomplishing nothing," said Sam.

"Almost three hours have passed Sam. This is killing me. What if I lose her?" said Callen.

"She's a fighter. She'll pull through," said Sam.

"You don't understand. She tried to warn me. But I was lecturing her and she pushed me out of the way and the bullet was meant for me," snapped Callen.

"You lectured her in the middle of a fight? What is wrong with you?" snapped Sam.

"What's wrong with me? What about her?" snapped Callen.

"She's a kid!" snapped Sam.

"It was her fault this happened in the first place Sam!" fired back Callen.

"Gentlemen calm down. This is a hospital. Mister Hanna I believe Mister Callen is just worried. Here comes the surgeon," said Hetty. Sure enough the surgeon had walked into the home.

"Your daughter was extremely lucky. The bullet hit her large intestine. We have extracted the bullet and she is in recovery. She'll have to stay in the hospital for about two weeks. She's expected to make a full recovery. I'll have a nurse take you to her when she's moved to a private room. Any questions?" explained the surgeon.

"No. Thank you," said Callen and the surgeon left.

"Better?" asked Sam.

"Yeah," responded Callen. A lady in a skirt and dress blouse came in the room at a brisk pace with two cops.

"Are you the guardian of Nicole Callen?" asked the lady.

"I'm her father. Who are you?" asked Callen.

"Lucy Denton. I'm a prosecutor for the city of San Diego. I have a warrant for your daughter's arrest."


	9. Chapter 9

**Note- There will be at least one sequel to this story. I want to know which would interest you more, a crossover with the show White Collar or a crossover with the show Lethal Weapon? Or are either of them even interesting?**

"On what charges?" demanded Sam.

"Possession, intent to sell, evading, arson...I'm pretty sure that there's more I can charge her with," said Lucy.

"Arson?" asked Hetty.

"She blew up a building," explained the lawyer.

"But they dropped the murder charges?" asked Callen.

"Yes. The murder charges against Nicole Callen have been dropped. Her mother and stepfather had skin under their fingernails with the DNA pointing to a known mafia hitman," said Lucy.

"They fought?" asked Sam.

"The hitman entered through the youngest daughter's bedroom window. She was shot while asleep. The noise alerted the parents and yes. They both fought. Unfortunately they also lost. These officers are to make sure Nicole does not leave this hospital. She has been labeled a flight risk. Only SDPD and NCIS personnel are allowed in her room. Only her father is allowed to stay with her constantly. Got it?" said Lucy. The NCIS team nodded. Lucy lead the officers away.

"So what now?" asked Sam.

"Now we wait Mister Hanna. Nothing can happen with Nicole unconscious," stated Hetty, looking at Callen.

Callen ast down and covered his face with his hands. Multiple emotions ran through his mind. Anger at the senseless death and his daughter's actions. Relief that there were no murder charges against Nicole. Worry about what next. By her own admission Nicole was guilty of several crimes. Yet she had taken a bullet for Hetty. She had taken another bullet for Callen and almost died. Didn't any of that count in her favor?

"Mister Callen? Your daughter has been moved to Room 418. She should be waking up any minute," said a nurse, startling Callen out of his thoughts. Hetty and Sam excused themselves to the cafeteria in search of food. Sam promised to bring Callen some food up.

* * *

Nicole woke up slowly. The first thing she became aware of was the searing pain in her chest. The next thing she became aware of was the cold steel of a handcuff on her wrist.

"Despite your best attempts you are still alive," said her father.

"Great," said Nicole, attempting to sit up. The pain in her shoulder and chest prevented it from happening.

"I wouldn't do that. They did place you under arrest," said Callen.

"Considering how many laws I have broken I figured that," said Nicole.

"Not even going to defend your actions or choices?" interrogated Callen.

"Ah. No. I did it knowingly and willingly. I am guilty," said Nicole looking him in the eyes.

"They dropped the murder charges," blurted Callen.

"That leaves how many others though?" said Nicole.

"I don't know what to do or think where Nicole. And you don't seem to care about any of this or yourself," snapped Callen.

"Why the hell should I? My choices are made and the past can't be undone. Face it. I'm a royal screw up! Why the hell do you care now all of a sudden?" snapped Nicole.

"I have always cared. Screw up or not. Criminal or not. Genius or not. You are my kid no matter what. And if you think I have never cared then I am the one who has royally screwed up," said Callen.

"Nicole Callen. You are quite the entrepreneur, aren't you? I'm Lucy Denton, prosecuting attorney. I have some questions for you," said the lawyer as she entered the room.

"Surely this can wait till she is not strung out on pain killers," reasoned Callen.

"According to her file she is always strung out on something. Detoxing is going to suck by the way. So is prison. That's where you will be spending a lot of time at after you leave here," said the lawyer, smirking. Callen wanted to curse but he never expected Nicole to start laughing.

"No questions until I have a lawyer of my own and when in a court room. And I can have you for false imprisonment, threatening, and harassment. I was not conscious when I was handcuffed so I wasn't read my rights. Therefore I am not formally under arrest. I will be asking the court for a restraining order against you. Now if you would be so kind as to have this removed I won't sue the city for your actions," said Nicole. All the adults were speechless.

"Seems I know the law better than you do," said the teenage genius, smiling.


	10. Chapter 10

The next two weeks were agonizing. Nicole was detoxing and recovering from the bullet wounds. She had gotten the prosecutor to release her, but Nicole had been subpoenaed to appear in court the day after she was released from the hospital. Nicole sighed as she read the document again.

"Thinking about running?" asked Callen from where he was leaning on the doorway with her discharge papers in his hand. Nicole snorted. Laughing still hurt but at least she could ditch the shoulder sling.

"Thinking about how much time I could get actually," answered Nicole. Her father had hardly left her side. He had seen her at her worst the past two weeks. They were both worried about court, especially since Nicole didn't want a trial. She stood up and walked out of the room, her head full of calculations.

"What if I plead guilty?" mumbled Nicole.

"What?" asked Callen.

"I'll plead guilty to possession and intent to deliver. The arson they can't solidly prove and the evading...well. Guess I did do that. So...five years?" inquired Nicole.

"How about we get a lawyer and at least attempt to fight it? You could do like eighteen months or less," said Callen.

"Would you rather I ask for the maximum sentence?" asked Nicole as they walked through the parking lot.

"No. And if you call yourself a screw-up or anything like that, then you will end up right back in that hospital bed," said Callen, using the fact that his daughter shared his dislike of hospitals against her. Nicole just sighed and gently got in the passenger seat. Callen was remembering the outbursts she had had when she was detoxing. He knew she held herself responsible for her mother, stepfather, and sister's death. There was nothing he could change or do to change that. Callen had went so far as to ask Nate his opinion and Nate said that it was survivor's guilt and that Nicole had yet to actually grieve. Nicole was quiet most of the night. She answered questions, but Callen could tell she was hiding her worry. He noticed he wasn't the only one to stay up all night.

The next morning found Callen and Nicole in a courtroom with a judge, county clerk, and baliff. Nicole kept fidgeting. Callen wasn't much better.

"Nicole Ashling Callen you have been summoned before this court to face the charges of evading, possession, intent to deliver, intent to sell, and arson. Do you understand these charges against you?" asked the judge.

"Yes Your Honor," answered Nicole, meeting the judge's eyes.

"Very well. I will have a lawyer assigned to your case and set a court date. Until that time you will be placed in the state's custody due to the evading charge. You are hereby deemed a flight risk," stated the judge.

"With all due respect Your Honor, but can we skip to the sentencing stage. I am guilty of all charges, except the arson charge. I'm asking for five years," said Nicole.

The judge, an elderly woman, looked at the teen in front of her and then glanced at her father. Callen was shifting from foot to foot. The judge pushed her glasses back on her nose and shuffled the papers in front of her. The judge knew that the arson charge couldn't one hundred percent be proven, but everything else could from Nicole's backpack from when her father arrested her.

"I will run that by the prosecutor tomorrow. I will see you in a week's time," said the judge, motioning for the baliff to take Nicole away.

"Agent Callen, meet me in chambers. Now," commanded the judge. Callen waited until the baliff had secured his daughter, then went to chambers. He only had to wait a few minutes for the judge.

"Agent Callen I have seen hundreds, maybe even thousands of teens in front of me who have been addicted to drugs. Your daughter is marked as a known user. But I have never had a teen before me, especially one that young, plead for a sentence on the high end of the sentence spectrum. The prosecution will more than likely accept this sentence," stated the judge as she sat behind her desk.

"It would save the prosecution time and effort on the state's part," said Callen.

"Yes it would. However. Nicole is a minor who, at this time, has no legal representation," said the judge.

"I understand..." said Callen, not understanding where this line of conversation was going.

"This means I can not present this deal to the prosecution without the backing of Nicole's guardian, which at this time is you. I can understand if you say no. This would mean no probation, she would be a designated felon until she was released, and she would not be granted early release without serious circumstances. Her record would still be sealed when she is released, but in detention she would be treated as a maximum security inmate as she would be classified as a felon," explained the judge. Callen stiffened under her steady gaze.

"The choice is yours, Agent Callen. But I need to know now where you support your daughter's plea deal or not," said the judge, waiting on the agent's response. Callen took a deep breath and ignored the pain in his heart.

"I support Nicole's plea for five years in detention to the charges of evading, possession, intent to deliver and intent to sell," said the agent, swallowing.

"I will let the prosecution know. I will see you in a week's time," dismissed the judge. Callen fled the courthouse, heart hurting.

* * *

 **Author's Note- Instead of doing a sequel I'm just going to continue on in this one story. There will be characters from other shows as well as a few OCs introduced in the coming chapters. This story has changed directions a lot. Hopefully I can get the next chapter up soon!**


	11. Chapter 11

Fifteen year old Nicole Callen leaned against the railing on her forearms and peered down. Out of all the two story pod's occupants, most of the girls seemed to be loitering in the common area, either talking at the tables or watching one of the two TVs. A few girls were playing dominos. A sigh from beside her drew her to attention to her neighbor, Stacey Dominque.

"Heard from intake to expect some new arrivals in next couple of days," said the older girl.

"How many?" asked Gracie Russell, one of Nicole's cell mates, as she came to stand beside the two.

"Our pod has capabilities to hold sixty, and we are sitting at forty-two inmates. Pods B and C are full, so us and E are probably gonna catch the overflow," stated Nicole. Both the other girls groaned.

"This shit ain't fair. We supposed to be long-term only. We ain't supposed to get no short timers," grumbled Stacey.

"Shit. They don't care. They just gotta find a bunk for everybody and both of our cells have an empty bunk," said Gracie.

"I already got one cellie that snores. I don't need another one," said Stacey.

"You talking about Patrice?" asked Nicole.

"Yeah. I know yall hear that freight train every night," said Stacey.

"Shit no. We got our own. At least Patrice is quiet during the day. I swear to God Ruthie has to make noise twenty-four seven," complained Gracie.

"My friend in intake said they've processed seventeen in, so we may get new cellies this go round," said Stacey.

"At most that'll be nine to us, and eight to E," said Nicole.

"Of that nine I reckon five will go looking for shit, two will just stay out the way, and other two will be scared," said Gracie.

"You are aware that some that want to stay out of the way get dragged into the shit right?" grumbled Nicole.

"You talking about your first night? Man that was some entertainment. Got Cameron to shut her ass up for quite a damn while," laughed Stacey.

"Hard to talk when your jaw is broke," deadpanned Nicole.

"You hold the record. A month in the hole on your first night for shit Ruthie started," chuckled Gracie.

"That is really not funny," remarked Nicole.

"Gave your ass a reputation though and ain't nobody bothered you since," said Stacey.

"Aside from Ruthie who is bound and determined to beat your ass at dominoes," remarked Gracie.

Before Nicole could respond to Gracie, a loud buzzer noise filled the pod as the doors to the fifteen cell pod opened. Four guards entered with ten new inmates all in a single file line. Each new inmate carried an armful of things. Nicole recognized it as the entrance pack that every one gets when they enter detention. The guards started to direct the new inmates to their new cells and by the time they reached one of the two stair cases to go to the upper story they still had six new arrivals. One was directed to Nicole's cell and another to Stacey's. Meanwhile on the lower floor one of the new arrivals had started a fight. An alarm started blaring in the cell pod making Nicole's new cellmate come out of the cell. Nicole grabbed her and forced her down on the floor. All four of the girls were laying on their stomachs and three had their hands behind their head. All of the guards in the pod rushed to the fighting girls.

"Well there's one shit starter," commented Gracie. Stacey peeked down over the edge of the floor.

"Looks like a new arrival decided to interrupt Patrice and Lindsay's game of dominoes. They've taken extreme offense to that. Oh. New arrival but a guard. Out comes the taser and just like that the fight is over. Everyone goes to the hole," said Stacey . Three guards escorted the three juveniles out of the pod.

"All mail room workers line up. Everyone else to your cells for lockdown," yelled the guard. Gracie and Stacey hopped up and went to the guard. Both of them worked in the mail and her new cellmate got up and went into the cell.

In the cell two bunk beds were against a side wall each. One laundry bag hung off one bunk, and two hung off the other. Each bunk bed had a desk and chair bolted down at the foot of the bunk. At the head of each of the bunk beds were two lockers. The lockers stood six feet tall, two feet wide, and two feet deep. Three of the four lockers had combination locks on them. Behind each set of lockers was a half wall. On one side was a toilet with a built in sink, and the sink had two buttons, one for cold water and the other for hot water. On the other side was a shower.

Nicole flung herself into the top bunk of the bunk bed on the left wall. She leaned her back against the stone wall and took in the new arrival's appearance. Glasses were perched on a small nose in front of sky blue eyes. Shoulder length ebony hair partially covered her face as she looked at the floor. She was shorter than Nicole. She wore what all the inmates wore: white sneakers, khaki pants, and an orange t-shirt with DJJ in black on the back. An identification badge was clipped to the front of her shirt. Nicole leaned forward to try to see the fidgeting girl's badge but before she could see it another of Nicole's cellmates walked in, loudly.

"Ah we gots a fish! What's your name fish? My name's Ruthie Marshall. You gonna be the bunk under Nicole's. You've met Nicole right? She's good but quiet. What about you? You here short term or long term? Now you lets me know if I can get you anything. I is always open to a trade," said Ruthie.

"Would you shut up? You are scaring the girl," said Nicole, aiming a halfhearted kick at Ruthie's head. Ruthie sidestepped. The new arrival jumped when the cell door shut with a loud clang. Ruthie chuckled and went to her locker and started rummaging around it.

"You'd be able to find shit if you cleaned and organized it," commented Nicole . Ruthie flipped her off.

"Seriously though. What's your name?" asked Nicole.

"Cassandra Caffrey but everyone calls me Cassie," muttered the girl.

"Well Cassie you might want to put your stuff in your locker. Except your pillow, blanket, and sheet. I would recommend putting them on your bunk. Also buy a lock on your first commissary order," remarked Nicole.

"Does this mean that whats been bothering you for the past damn month is over? Cause your ass been quieter than usual and that is some scary shit. You gots people convinced you in heres for some murder charge," rambled Ruthie.

"You're a murderer?" stammered Cassie as she grabbed her stuff off the desk and edged her way to her locker. Nicole threw her pillow at Ruthie. Ruthie threw it back.

"Not really," answered Nicole, laying on her pillow. Ruthie withdrew from her locker with a legal pad in one hand, envelopes and a book of stamps in the other and a pen in the other.

"Good luck finding out what Nicole's in for. I think the only one who knows besides her is Gracie. I is in for some theft shit. Gracie is in for assault with a deadly weapon and battery. But don't worry she passed anger management. Just do not piss off Gracie or Nicole. They known fighters. Also since you is white and tiny, avoid the black population except me and Patrice. Unless you can fight I would stick to Nicole if I was you. And keep ya mouth shut. Some of these girls are vicious. Don't let the fact we female fool you. We can be worse than the boys," said Ruthie.

"Does everyone fight?" asked Cassie.

"Nope. Nicole and Gracie only fight when they have to. But when they do fight it don't end well for the shit starter. Whatcha in for Cassie?" asked Ruthie as she rolled onto the bottom bunk across from Cassie's.

"Forgery. Release date is my eighteenth birthday," shared Cassie. What followed was a question and answer session between Ruthie and Cassie. Nicole listened and discovered many things about Cassie. She was an artist, her favorite color was purple, she had an older brother named Neal, she had been in numerous foster homes, and she was fourteen. Ruthie was explaining to Cassie who all made up Ruthie's family when the cell doors all swung open.

"Mail call!" yelled Gracie , a big box of sorted mail on her hip. Her and Stacey moved through the pod distributing mail. Finally Gracie arrived at her own cell.

"Already it's commissary order time so everyone gets that. Everyone has gotten at least three letters as well," said Gracie as she put the box on her bunk.

" Cassandra Caffrey is you right?" asked Gracie.

"Yes," mumbled Cassie.

"Alright since I don't trust the idiot or genius to explain this right I am going to explain it. In the manilla envelope I'm gonna give you is several pages. The first page is your balance sheet. It says how much you got on your books and can spend. We get to order commissary biweekly with a two hundred dollar limit each order. The rest of the pages is the commissary list and order form. Fill it out, put it all back in the manilla envelope and seal it. A guard will come around tomorrow and pick it up. Do not give it to an inmate, alright?" explained Gracie. Cassie nodded in understanding. Gracie handed her the commissary packet and three letters. Nicole had a commissary packet and four letters while Ruthie got a commissary packet and seven letters. Gracie then tossed Nicole her own commissary packet and four letters.

"See ya at dinner," said Gracie as she left to finish her job.

"Everyone not a mail worker line up for dinner count. No talking," snapped one of the two guards in the pod. After the guards finished their count they lead the girls to the cafeteria. The cafeteria had two food stations on opposite sides of the huge room. Eight long tables that could each sit twenty people filled the room. The chairs to the tables were not bolted down and could be moved from table to table.

"While only one pod can do laundry at a time, two pods can eat at the same time. We share our meals with Pod E. We are Pod D by the way," explained Ruthie.

Some how when she went to get her tray of food, Cassie was separated from Ruthie and Nicole. She found herself looking for a seat in the filling room when she bumped into someone. A tall brunette turned to face Cassie, malicious intent in her brown eyes. Cassie quickly stammered out an apology and started backing away.

"Guess we gonna have to teach this fish some manners, ain't we girls?" said the brunette , two girls flanking her as all three approached Cassie. All of a sudden the brunette hit the floor after a chair hit her leg hard. She jumped up and glared at the direction the chair had come from. Blue eyes stared into brown.

"Callen," snarled the girl.

" Cameron you really should watch where you're going. I would hate for your jaw to get broken again, " said Nicole from where she was sitting.

"Why you little bitch..." growled Cameron as she reached for Nicole. Her hand got grabbed by Gracie from behind.

"I suggest you walk away before history repeats itself," said Gracie.

Cameron wretched her arm away from Gracie and stormed off. Gracie watched her go and sighed. She motioned for Cassie to sit down. Gracie sat down and Cassie sat in front of Nicole.

"Avoid Cameron," advised Gracie. Cassie nodded and started playing with her food. She swirled peas into mashed potatoes and picked at the ketchup on the meatloaf. She glanced at the fruit cup. Nicole watched her.

"Why are you doing that?" asked Nicole. Cassie shrugged but started eating.

"Pod D line up for counts and night lockdown," called a guard. The girls did as ordered. Once all the inmates were in the cells all the cells were locked until morning. It didn't bother the inmates. They had commissary to order, letters to read, and letters to write.

Cassie decided to do the commissary first. She frowned as she looked at the lengthy list of stuff she could order. Her balance sheet had surprised her. It showed she had five hundred dollars. Now she just had to figure out what to order.

"I'd suggest a lock, get the limit on stationary, envelopes and stamps. Get a bowl with a lid and a cup with a lid. Also order hygiene products. Good ones because the ones in the new inmate pack are shit," suggested Nicole from where she crouched in front of her locker as she looked for a pen.

"Thanks for the suggestions," said Cassie.

"Try to get some snacks and drink mixes. Also, we are allowed quarterly packages from our families. Maybe your brother can order you one. He can also order you books and magazines," said Nicole. She launched herself back onto the top bunk above Cassie. She filled out her own commissary form, ordering more pens and snacks. Then she turned to her four letters. One was from Hetty, one was from Sam, one was from someone named Gibbs, but the last one was from her father. Nicole thought back to what she'd seen on the news about two weeks ago. Someone had shot a video of her father getting shot six times on a boardwalk and it was on the news. Gracie, the only girl in the pod to meet her father, had pulled her out of the common area when she recognized who had been shot. Using the hot water from the sink and tea from Nicole's locker Gracie had filled Nicole with tea.

"Bury your worry. You show any weakness and you might as well paint a big ass target on your back. Don't count the man dead until someone tells you he is," Gracie had ordered. So Nicole had. She hadn't heard or seen anyone from the real world for over two weeks. Ruthie had asked about it but a death glare from Gracie had her scrambling to change topics.

Nicole decided her nerves couldn't take the suspense and picked up the letter from her dad. She noted that the return address was a hospital. She carefully opened the envelope and a lengthy letter by her father's standards fell out onto her lap. After taking a deep breath to steady herself she flipped open the letter and began reading.

 _Nicole,_

 _I'm sorry. I know you may not know what happened, at least I hope you don't, but I know you have noticed the lack of visits and letters. Well...I got hurt pretty bad. Sam said that what happened was shown on the news and I really hope you didn't see it. I don't want any secrets between us so I'm going to tell you. Sam and Hetty said if I don't they will, so here it goes. I was shot six times in the chest. I didn't have on a vest. I would say I'm fine, but Sam, Hetty, some doctors and a few nurses would disagree with me. But I will be fine in time. I am stuck in this stupid hospital for at least another two weeks. I'm also off duty for at least the next four months, if the director nor Hetty extends that. Sam is threatening to make me wear full body armor twenty -four seven and I seriously can not tell if he's joking or not. Judging by the look on his face he is not._

 _Kid, I know my job worries you but you don't say anything. I know it has scared you alot, especially with this happening. I can't promise something like this won't happen again. But I can promise that it will take a lot to take me away from you. I am trying not to screw this up kid. I really am. I miss you and the first chance I can I'm visiting you. It's been too long._

 _I love you,_

 _Dad_

 _P.S. You can write me at the hospital or our usual post box. Hetty volunteered to check for me._

Nicole wiped a hand across her face. She wasn't crying, but felt like it. It had taken her and her father most of the time she had been locked up to get to the point they talked about their emotions. Their first letters had been awkward and then Sam had started writing her, saying that the letters were highly entertaining to him and he could tell that Nicole was Callen's daughter because they were both socially inept. Then Hetty wrote giving suggestions on what to write about. Gradually Nicole and Callen had gotten used to writing each other with them usually exchanging two letters a week. Nicole opened the letters from Sam and Hetty. Both of them apologized for not writing but her father's condition had been touch and go for a long time so they didn't want to get her hopes up in case they lost him. Sam admitted that Callen had been in a coma and after asking how long he had been out, asked about Nicole. He had gotten upset with Nicole's adopted aunt and uncle that no one had told her, so he wrote her the same day he had woken up. Deciding her father was in good hands with Sam and Hetty, Nicole turned her attention to her last letter.

Leroy Jethro Gibbs introduced himself as Nicole's godfather. He told her that he and his team was why Callen had had to leave Ireland, they had needed him in Serbia. He said that in the divorce Nicole's mother had fought dirty, using Callen's past to secure full custody of Nicole and no visitation for Callen, to hurt Callen. It workes. Callen had then thrown himself into his new job at NCIS. Gibbs explained to Nicole that he was telling her because Gibbs knew how smart Nicole was. Callen had also told Gibbs that the father -daughter relationship between the two Callens was rocky at best. He was also unsure if Callen would ever admit to Nicole want had happened. Gibbs told Callen he was going to tell her and Callen had agreed to let him. Nicole figured her father had forgotten that bit. Gibbs's letter had come from D.C., so it had been mailed weeks sat back and let her mind wander. Finally Gracie broke the silence in the quiet cell.

"I'm gonna be an aunt," said Gracie.

"Please tell me its by way of an older sibling," said Nicole.

"Oldest sister. One letter from her saying she's pregnant and no mention of a father. A letter from my mom, half excited about being a grandma the other half whining shes too young to be one. A letter from my dad complaining his smartest child is a tie between me and my youngest brother. And finally a letter from my favorite uncle laughing about the whole thing," said Gracie, holding up each letter in turn. Then Ruthie popped up with a picture of one of her young cousins and news about her many family members.

"Do all three of you have big families?" asked Cassie.

"Gracie and Ruthie do. I don't," answered Nicole.

"I don't either," said Cassie.

"I got my dad and my grandparents. I've also got an adopted aunt and uncle," said Nicole, surprising both Ruthie and Gracie. Eventually the cell got quiet with all four girls writing letters, Ruthie occasionally asking how to spell certain words. Then Ruthie started snoring.

"Everything good with your dad?" asked Gracie.

" Yeah, " answered Nicole.

"Nicole?" asked Cassie.

"What?" responded Nicole .

"Are you really a genius?" asked Cassie. Gracie softly laughed.

"My IQ is one hundred and eighty -seven. So yeah. I guess I am," answered Nicole honestly.

"Nicole doesn't have to do school here like almost all of us do. She got her GED last year," commented Gracie.

"If you are a genius, why are you here?" asked the Caffrey , sleep evident in her voice.

"Even geniuses make mistakes. I've made many," said Nicole as she lay looking at the ceiling .

"Everyone makes mistakes. Is okay to make mistakes," slurred Cassie .

"Not everyone does it on the grand scale I did," responded Nicole.

"What you mean? " said Cassie.

"I'll tell you when you turn eighteen," said Nicole .

" Promise? " asked Cassie.

"I promise," sighed Nicole. Soon Cassie's soft snoring joined Ruthie's . Nicole hopped down and covered Cassie with the blanket at the foot of Cassie's bunk.

"She doesn't belong here," muttered Nicole.

"Nope. She doesn't," commented Gracie.

"You don't agree with my decision?" asked Nicole, standing and facing Gracie .

"No I don't. But it's too late now," said Gracie.

 **Author's Note- There is a two year time skip between this chapter and the previous one, if that wasn't clear. Review with any questions, comments, or concerns! Hopefully next chapter will be out quicker!**


	12. Chapter 12

Cassie woke up the next morning to the sound of a running shower and an argument. The sound of an apparent tug of war made her look out of her bunk and push the black blanket she swore she hadn't wrapped around herself off. Gracie and Ruthie were fighting over a towel, so Cassie assumed Nicole was in the shower.

"Why we gotta do this every morning? Callen showers first cause she doesn't sleep, then me, then you, then Cassie," said Gracie as she tugged on the towel.

"Nah. It me then you!" said Ruthie. Cassie decided not to comment as the shower went off. After a minute a shirtless Nicole entered Cassie's view, her khakis already on and rubbed the towel on her shoulder length auburn hair to dry it.

"If you hurry you can shower next. This might take a bit," recommended Nicole. Cassie quickly took her showering stuff and did.

"Water only runs for five minutes!" warned Nicole. She didn't mention it was lukewarm water. She figured the girl would quickly realize that. She got dressed then turned towards the two grumbling teens.

"Callen, Cassie, Gracie, Ruthie. Alphabetical order," said Nicole. In unison they threw the towel at the smiling Nicole. After all four of them were showered and dressed, their cell door opened for them to line up. A guard came by for commissary orders and breakfast count, then they were ordered to the cafeteria for breakfast.

"How do they open all the doors at once?" asked Cassie .

"In the control tower each pod has a control panel. They can open all the cell doors in a pod at once or one by one," answered Gracie. They entered the cafeteria just as Pod E did. That was all Cassie had time to register before she was quickly pulled behind Gracie and Ruthie.

The girl from the night before broke out of her line and charged at Nicole, her fist raised. Nicole ducked, sending her own fist into Cameron's stomach then hitting her jaw. The two teens became a blur of hits and kicks. The cafeteria was full of yelling, no one else wanting to get involved in case the other side got involved as well. An alarm sounded. Multiple guards rushed passed the spectators to try and pull the fighters. The moment Nicole was forced onto her stomach by a guard she quit fighting. She had learned her first year in tasers hurt. Her hands were quickly handcuffed behind her. Her lip was busted and she had a cut bleeding above her eye. She met Cameron's glare as both girls were pulled to their feet. Cameron spat blood at Nicole. Cameron also had a busted lip, but she also had what looked like a broken nose and the beginnings of a black eye. Nicole glanced at Gracie. Gracie gave a quick nod as Nicole was dragged from the cafeteria and not gently tossed into a padded solitary confinement cell.

Nicole pushed herself up, annoyed they had left her handcuffed. She leaned against the padded wall. All she could do was wait until she got dragged to the warden. Then she'd find out the punishment for her fight with Cameron. She closed her eyes and waited.

"You kick like a freaking mule Callen," came Cameron's voice through the wall Nicole was leaning against . Nicole snorted.

"Just now figuring that out?" retorted Nicole.

"I know who she is Callen. With the way you protecting you, you know too. How long you think you and Russell gonna be able to protect her?" said Cameron.

"Oh we figure long enough," said Nicole.

"You two are going to end up bloody and dead," laughed Cameron.

"No better way to go," said Nicole.

Before Cameron could retort, Nicole's cell door opened and two guards came in and pulled her to her feet and escorted her out of the cell. She saw two guards pull Cameron out of her cell. Both girls were dragged to the warden's office. They were forced to stand before the warden's desk. The warden sighed as she looked up and saw the two girls in front.

"You don't look thrilled to see us," said Nicole.

"I'm not. You want to know why? Because I transferred Perez to a different pod specifically because of this. In two years you two have been before me for fighting each other more times than any other inmate I have ever had. But now I have a way to put a complete stop to it," said the warden, lifting a packet of paper off her desk.

"I, Warden Linda Walker, hereby agree to the transfer of Inmate Cameron Perez to Central California Women's Facility. This transfer goes into affect in one week. You are to remain in solitary confinement until then. Guards take Inmate Perez back to solitary confinement, in a cell away from inmate Callen," ordered Warden Walker. A guard escorted Cameron out.

"Guards, if you would step out. I need a word with Inmate Callen," said the warden. The guards did as ordered. Nicole shifted from foot to foot as the warden looked at her.

"The only reasons you are not joining Perez is your age, security risk, and what you agreed to. That is all. If you wouldn't fight others me and you would not see each other so frequently. The question is now what to do with you," said the warden.

"Could just let me go back to my cell," suggested Nicole.

"Two pods watched you two fight. Granted Perez did start it but you still engaged her. So here's what I'm going to do with you. Two weeks in hole with mail privileges, assessment with a therapist, and you give one lecture to some middle school students. Or I leave you in hole for two months with no privileges for breaking Perez's nose and causing a disturbance," said the warden. She had been pushing for Nicole to attend therapy ever since the teen had entered detention.

"Oh come on. That's blackmail," said Nicole.

" That you have no proof of," said the warden. She knew she had Nicole beat by offering the mail privileges. The warden was the only one in the detention center who knew fully well who Nicole was besides Nicole herself. She was aware of Nicole's father's current medical status. The warden also knew that Nicole's father was the only thing keeping Nicole grounded.

"Fine," gritted out Nicole. She knew she had no choice.

"Great. The guards will take you to your assessment and tomorrow you'll do the lecture," said the warden. That was the end of their conversation as the warden opened the door and instructed the guards to take her for her assessment. They took her to a room down the hall from the warden's office. Inside was a table that was bolted to the floor and two chairs not bolted down. On the table was a link that was about six inches from one side of the table. She had a nasty suspicion what that link was for.

Nicole was uncuffed on one wrist and shoved in a chair. One of the guards ran the handcuffs through the link and recuffed her while the other guard held her in the chair by her shoulders. They then left her only in the room. She heard the door lock as she tugged on the cuffs in slight frustration. Nicole had managed to avoid this situation since her arrival. She was fine in her opinion and didn't want to talk about the past, or the present really. She was broken out of her thoughts by the arrival of a lady carrying a brief case, a first aid kit, and two bottles of water.

"Sorry to keep you waiting. Took longer to read your file than I thought it would," said the lady. Nicole shrugged in response as the lady put everything down on her side of the table.

"Anyway I'm Doctor Maureen Cahill. I am the one who will be seeing you both for this assessment and after. So how are you today, Miss Callen?" said Doctor Cahill, noticing Nicole flinch at the title.

"Just lovely," answered Nicole, slightly tugging on the cuffs. The doctor propped her chin up on her hand. She could tell the teen in front of her was afraid of the assessment and was trying to hide it.

"I've read your entire file. How have you managed to be here two years without an assessment even though your file all but screams you need therapy?" asked Cahill.

" Luck? " supplied Nicole.

"I am going to guess what happened. You know the juvenile system is overwhelmed. You knew what the intake officer wanted to hear and see. You essentially played the system by staying under the radar," suggested Cahill.

" Guess you figured me out, " admitted Nicole. Cahill smiled, but decided to back off for now.

"I'm going to ask you a bunch of questions and I want you to answer me as truthfully as you can. Before we begin that though, may I doctor those cuts on you?" said Cahill.

" In case you couldn't tell, I'm not in the position to stop you, " answered Nicole, shaking her wrists to emphasize her point. Behind her glasses Cahill's eyes narrowed at Nicole's deflection. She opened the first aid kit as she stood up and walked to the teen. The teen tensed for a second but slowly relaxed. Cahill opened the disinfectant wipes.

"This is probably going to sting. Sorry," said Cahill.

" I've had worse, " responded Nicole. Cahill cleaned the cut above Nicole's eye first.

"Most thirteen year olds try to avoid gunshot wounds. Yet you willingly took two," commented Cahill.

" Yeah, " confirmed Nicole as Cahill hesitated over Nicole's lip.

"I promise I won't bite you," remarked Nicole.

"Can I trust you?" inquired Cahill. Nicole sighed.

"Doc I'm a designated felon. I'm not going to hurt you. Up to you whether or not you trust me," answered Nicole. Cahill lightly pressed the wipe to the busted lip. Nicole slightly whimpered at the disinfectant . Cahill quickly cleaned it, happy neither cut was actively bleeding.

"Want some water?" asked Cahill, motioning to the two water bottles . Nicole raised a eyebrow at her question.

"There's a straw in my briefcase. I know you're under disciplinary action and can't be uncuffed unless in your cell," said Cahill.

"Then yes. And thanks," answered Nicole . Cahill opened the water and, after placing a straw in it, put it in front of the teen. She sat down and Nicole took a drink. Cahill pulled out a pad of paper and a pen.

"What's your full name and what would you like me to call you? " asked Cahill, starting the assessment.

"Nicole Ashling Callen. Nicole is fine," answered Nicole.

" Favorite color? " asked Cahill.

"Grey. Doesn't matter the shade," answered Nicole.

"Favorite drink?" asked Cahill.

"Irish breakfast tea with milk and honey or a sprite," said Nicole.

" Favorite animal? " asked Cahill. Nicole had to think about that one for a minute.

"Green sea turtles and orcas," said Nicole.

" Favorite band? " asked Cahill, jotting down answers.

"Tie between The Who and Metallica . Although I do like others," answered Nicole .

"Describe your relationship with your father," said Cahill.

" Complicated, " answered Nicole.

"Do you resent him for leaving you with your mom? Do you resent him for being the one to arrest you?" asked Cahill.

" Yes to the first but no to the second, " answered Nicole. That answer surprised Cahill.

"Elaborate please," said Cahill. Nicole sighed.

"I wish my dad had been there more when I was a kid. But I nor him can change that. And I told him to arrest me, " said Nicole. Cahill decided to switch questions.

"Do you still have cravings for ecstasy?" said Cahill. Nicole nodded .

"Have you taken any drugs during your incarceration?" asked Cahill.

" No. I've been clean since I was thirteen, " answered Nicole, meeting Cahill's gaze.

"How long were you addicted?" asked Cahill.

"Two years. Or just about two, " answered Nicole.

"Any suicidal thoughts?" asked Cahill.

"Yes," answered Nicole .

"When?" asked Cahill. Silence reigned as the teen looked at the floor.

" Guessing right after you entered detention and right after your father was shot, " stated Cahill. Nicole glared at her but sighed.

"Close. Second week in, my sister's birthday, Christmas, and yeah when I saw my father get shot," answered Nicole.

"Any attempts?" asked Cahill.

" No. Just thoughts, " said Nicole. Cahill stopped the questioning so Nicole could drink some more water.

"Do you have nightmares or night terrors?" asked Cahill. A nod yes was her answer. Cahill frowned, but wasn't entirely surprised. The next question would probably not get an answer, but she had to ask it.

"Did you agree to protect Cassandra Caffrey for the FBI because of your sister's death?" asked Cahill.

" Yes. Yes I did. "

 **Next Chapter: Cahill meets Callen, Nicole gains a fan after her lecture, and Callen visits Nicole.**


	13. Chapter 13

After finishing her assessment of Nicole, Doctor Cahill informed Nicole she had to share the answers with both the warden and Nicole's father. A half grin appeared on Nicole's face, but she agreed. Deciding the warden could wait, Cahill left the detention center to talk to Nicole's father, NCIS Special Agent G Callen. She hadn't expected for Nicole to answer all of her questions, and she doubted whether the girl trusted her. She also didn't expect it to take her three hours to find the hospital G Callen was in. She also didn't expect it to take another hour and several interrogations to locate his hospital room. Doctor Cahill knew very little about the man, and knew requesting his file would basically be a lost cause. After all his daughter's file was highly classified itself. She knew he had been badly injured just a few weeks ago so when she entered a room to see a man fully dressed tying his shoes she thought she'd entered the wrong room.

"Special Agent Callen?" called Cahill.

" Yeah? " answered the man, looking up at her. Cahill could tell by the eyes alone Nicole was his daughter. They had the same shade of blue eyes. He straightened up, trying unsuccessfully to hide a wince. He stood and opened the drawer of the nightstand.

"Are you supposed to be up?" asked Cahill.

"I'm fine. Now you know my name and occupation, but I don't know your's," said Callen.

"My name is Doctor Maureen Cahill, " replied Cahill.

"I've already done a psych evaluation. And you are not employed by this hospital. So, again, who exactly are you?" asked Callen.

"What makes you think that?" fired backed Cahill.

" You're a psych doctor going by lack of scrubs and stethoscope. You have on a vanilla perfume and don't smell like antiseptic. You are nicely dressed, " said Callen as he stepped into her personal space. He unclipped her badge from the bottom of her blouse.

"And this says Department of Juvenile Corrections. So what did she do?" asked Callen, handing her her badge back.

" I did an assessment of your daughter this morning, " answered Cahill. Callen went back to the drawer and put his wallet and phone in his pocket.

"That go well?" asked Callen.

"She should be in therapy, and shouldn't have been allowed to go so long without it. Now, Agent Callen why are you allowing her to work for the FBI?" blurted Cahill. Callen's eyes narrowed.

"Can you repeat that?" asked Callen, his tone deadly.

" Why did you agree to your daughter working for the FBI? " repeated Cahill.

"I didn't," growled Callen. They were interrupted by another's appearance .

"G we been over this before. You can't get up and leave. Oh hello. I'm Sam Hanna, this idiot's partner," said Sam as he entered the room. He seemed to notice the tension when no one acknowledged him.

"Something wrong?" inquired Sam cautiously.

"Special Agent Callen here agreed for his daughter to protect Cassandra Caffrey for the next few years. He did not take into account Nicole's current mental health or the impact it could have on her mental well being," stated Cahill.

" And I'm telling you I did not agree to a damn thing, " snapped Callen.

"Your signature is on the contract!" snapped back Cahill.

" Do you have the contract with you? " asked Sam, motioning to the briefcase in Cahill's left hand.

"Yes. I have her file," said Cahill. She put the briefcase down and rummaged through the file. She found the paper in question .

"May I see it?" asked Callen. Reluctantly she handed him the paper. He frowned, and handed the paper to Sam.

" There's no way I signed that. I wouldn't put my daughter in that position, nor under the control of any agency, be it FBI or even NCIS. Even if she asked me to sign it, I wouldn't. I signed something for her once. And because of that particular paper she won't be free till she's eighteen, " said Callen.

"But it's your signature," said Cahill as Callen deflated onto the bed, shaking his head.

"It's too neat to be his. It's his name, yes. But his handwriting resembles chicken scratch and is rushed. Plus there's the date. This was signed the day after G was shot. He was in a coma. He didn't sign this," frowned Sam, handing the paperwork back to her.

"So someone forged your signature?" asked Cahill.

"It would appear so, Doctor Cahill," answered a woman Cahill had not seen or heard enter the room.

"Any suggestions as to why, Hetty?" asked Sam. All of the adults went quiet. Then an idea struck Cahill.

"What if someone figured out who Nicole is? How many enemies has her father, grandparents, and herself even, got? What if Cassandra is the bait and Nicole the actual target?'' said Cahill. Callen went white. Hetty thought about it. Sam cast glances at Hetty and Callen.

"She feels guilty over her family's death. Giving her someone to protect would get her attention. Saying her father, the one parent she has left, agrees and supports it, that would get her compliance," elaborated Cahill.

"It could also be recruitment. With her intelligence, family connections, and position, she would be a hell of an operative," suggested Sam. He ignored the murderous glance Callen sent him.

"It may very well be her own reputation. She is a known fighter in detention, and is obviously very good at it. Cassandra Caffrey is following in her brother's footsteps and he is possibly the only forger in this country better than her and that's only because of experience. The FBI does not want another Neal Caffrey, but the drug cartels do. And since Neal is currently an FBI CI, they will take the next best thing. His sister will either be used by the cartels as their forger, or used to force Neal himself to be. But if the cartels learn of Nicole's other skills, they may take her as well," proposed Hetty.

"So essentially my kid is being used as a pawn and there's nothing I can do about it? Great," said Callen.

"How exactly did you get a Callen to agree to a psychological assessment?" asked Sam.

" The warden offered her a deal after she got into a fight this morning and broke another kid's nose. It was two months under disciplinary action, or two weeks, psychological assessment, and give a lecture and keep mail privileges. I came here to discuss with her father the results of the assessment, " answered Cahill. Sam chuckled as his partner groaned.

"What were the results?" asked Hetty. Cahill bit her lip, not wanting to discuss this in front of them.

" Might as well tell them as well. If not they'll hack her file to find out, " grumbled Callen.

"Would your daughter lie, in your opinion?" asked Cahill. Callen shook his head no.

" She wouldn't lie on an assessment. My daughter will try to smartass her way out of a question or deflect, but she's never really lied as far as I know. Now if her answer would put someone in danger, I believe she would lie, " answered Callen.

"Any suggestions on how to get her to really open up?" asked Cahill. She hoped Callen understood what she was asking for. He did.

"She likes music and games. I'd recommend dominoes or Uno myself. She also likes reading," answered Callen.

"What topics would you consider to be touchy subjects for her?" inquired Cahill. The NCIS team leader thought for a minute.

"Her family, especially her mother and sister. Her intelligence. Emotions in general. Maybe her charges and addiction," answered Callen, shrugging.

"What are your thoughts on your relationship with her?" asked Cahill.

"Complicated," answered Callen. Cahill snorted. Callen shot her a puzzled look.

"She gave me the exact same answer," stated the doctor . That made Sam laugh. Callen sent a half hearted kick at his partner.

"Both Callens are extremely similar," said Sam. Cahill agreed and asked a few more questions before she left the hospital with a better understanding of the teenager she was dealing with.

* * *

The next morning Nicole wanted to bang her head against the wall. She had given a rough lecture on the perils of drug use with a middle school teacher to an audience of elementary and middle school kids. Then the school superintendent asked the kids if they had any questions for Nicole herself. Multiple hands went up across the gym.

"Have you ever been addicted to drugs?" asked one kid.

" Yes, " answered Nicole, but she didn't elaborate.

"Are you in jail?" asked another.

"Yeah," deadpanned Nicole. A young girl raised her hand. Nicole pointed at her.

"What...what would you do with your friends asked you...to start drugs?" asked the girl.

"Ignore them, tell an adult, and find new friends. Drugs are not cool. They are not going to make you cool. They will destroy who you are and they will destroy your loved ones. Your family will no longer trust you. They will no longer see you the same. If your friends are real friends, they won't ask you to do drugs," answered Nicole , thinking about her father.

"Once won't kill you though," laughed a boy in one of the front rows.

"It might. You don't know what's been put in the drugs. You don't know how your body will react, so you could be allergic. Besides, once is all it takes to get addicted. Then a lot of times addicts will commit other crimes to continue their addiction. Theft, robbery, kidnapping, and murder are quite commonly committed by addicts. Drug addiction is going to mainly end in two ways, in prison or dead. I recommend avoiding drugs all together," said Nicole .

The gym filled with silence. Nicole waited on another student to raise their hand or blurt out a question. It seemed that they were all focusing on the fact drugs could kill them. That was a good think. It they feared them, they wouldn't try them. Nicole knew first hand overdosing wasn't fun and detox was probably worse than that. The principal dismissed all the students back to class. Nicole watched the kids flood out as she sat down, the guard at the exit watching her closely. Nicole smirked at him. Then she looked shocked. A kid, the girl that asked about friends was walking towards her, clutching a binder and a pen to her chest.

"Ummm...can I write you?" asked the girl.

" Why? Why would you want to? " asked Nicole, rubbing the back of her neck.

"My...my mom is a lawyer and my dad is a cop. I heard them talking about how kids locked up are lonely and it's sad. You looked...sad when you answered my question," responded the shy girl. Nicole thought for a minute .

"Tell you what kid. I'll give you the information to write me. But you have to ask one of your parents for permission and they have to write me saying it's ok or I won't answer," offered Nicole. She figured one of the parents would look her up to view her record. She doubted they would allow their daughter to write her. The girl handed over her binder and pen excitedly and Nicole stood up as the guard neared the two girls. Nicole wrote down her name, inmate number, and address then handed the stuff back to the girl.

"Will you write back?" asked the girl.

" If you get permission. What's your name? " asked Nicole.

"Riana Murtaugh," answered the girl.

"Then Riana I promise to write you back if you get permission," said Nicole as she put her hands behind her head. Riana went to say something else but the guard stopped her.

" You'll be late for lunch if you don't go, " said the guard, handcuffing Nicole's hands behind her back. Riana hesitated.

"Go on. I'll be fine kid," said Nicole . Riana ran out of the gym. The guard held Nicole's arm as they watched the kid run.

"Gave her your mailing information?" asked the guard. Nicole didn't answer as they left the gym and got in a van. After buckling her in the backseat the guard got in to drive back to the detention center. He decided to talk to the teen on the drive back.

"I've watched and dealt with you ever since you've been locked up, Callen. You never really seek out human interaction unless it's a cellmate or to fight. Just curious about the sudden change," stated the guard.

" She reminds me of someone, " answered Nicole.

* * *

Riana thought about Nicole most of the day. She figured her mom would more than likely give her permission to write Nicole. Her dad would probably tell her no immediately. When she got home after school she was relieved to see her mom was home but her dad wasn't. She went straight to her mom's office and knocked on the door before entering.

Trish Murtaugh looked up from her computer as her daughter entered. Riana rummaged through her backpack. After she took out her binder she walked to the desk. Trish waited. She knew her shy daughter would blurt out what was on her mind eventually. She didn't have to wait long.

"A girl came and gave a lecture at school today and she seemed sad and I like her and I want to write her and she gave me her information but made me promise I would get yours or Dad's permission and he'll say no so can I please write her? Oh you have to write her too or she won't answer me, " said Riana in a rush. She handed the paper with Nicole's information on it to her mom. Trish frowned at the information, but didn't say no. She decided to look the teenager up first before she made a decision.

"I'll think about it tonight. You go and do your homework. I think your dad's bring home Asian food for dinner," said Trish. Riana left happy, because her mother hadn't said no.

Trish turned her attention to her computer and pulled up Nicole Callen's criminal file. She read about Nicole's early arrests and the court documents from them. She read the reports from Nicole's probation officer and noted Nicole's intelligence and her obvious strained relationship with her mother and stepfather. Her breath left her when she read the warrant for Nicole's arrest for the murder of her mother, sister, and stepfather. Her heart broke as she realized that Nicole had spent almost a week on the streets running from a crime she was framed for and ended with her taking two bullets and her own father arresting her. She was intrigued that Nicole had been the one to ask for five years and that no lawyer had been consulted. She read about how Nicole had been involved in almost twenty fights during her two month stay in San Diego Juvenile Detention, all self-defense, and was transferred to Los Angeles because of it. Trish tried to pull up personal information, and was blocked. She decided to not push the matter.

Riana woke up the next morning hopeful. She dressed quickly and dashed down the stairs to the kitchen. Trish looked up from where she was frying bacon and smiled. Her father quirked an eyebrow at her. Her brother rushed past them, an explanation of going to school early for basketball practice spilling from his mouth as he left the house. Trish put plates of food in front of Riana and her father, then went to finish getting ready for work. By the time Trish came back her husband Rodger had left for work and Riana had washed their plates.

"Dad got called in," explained Riana.

"Okay. Go put this in the mailbox," said Trish . She handed Riana an envelope. Riana looked at it. It was addressed to Nicole.

"Does this mean I can write her?" asked Riana, bouncing with excitement .

"Yes. But there are rules. I get to examine all incoming mail. I can tell you to stop at any time. The other rules are for her. Now hurry up or we will both be late.

* * *

Nicole jolted awake. She tried to slow her breathing so her heart rate would also slow down. After a few minutes both were back to normal. She ran a shaky hand across her face, glancing at the detention center issued watch on that wrist. She had slept almost forty five minutes. Nicole banged her head on the cot before rolling off of it. She started doing push ups before switching to sit ups.

Nightmares plagued her sleep since she had given the lecture on drugs four days ago. She was exhausted, but did as many exercises and stretches that she could to avoid going insane in the eight foot by eight foot isolation cell. Nicole was actually contemplating begging the warden to let her out of isolation and would be willing to do almost anything to achieve that. She was shocked when the door was opened by a guard and she was handcuffed before being escorted to the warden's office.

"Sit down before you fall down," ordered the warden. Nicole obeyed.

"Are you aware of what security classification is?" asked the warden. Nicole shook her head no.

" Security classification is a number between one and five that is assigned to every inmate with one being low and five being the highest. It's determined by family, contacts, friends, mental health, among other things. It essentially determines how closely you are watched. Caffrey and yourself are the only fives in my unit. So it was noticed by the guards that you haven't been sleeping and have been averaging in between two and three hours a night. Would you have said anything? " said the warden.

"No," said Nicole.

"That's not surprising. I've talked to both Doctor Cahill and your father. They have been made aware you are not sleeping and have decided that you'll be meeting with Doctor Cahill for at least a hour three times a week. That amount can increase or decrease as we three see fit. This is not negotiable, understand ? " stated the warden. Nicole nodded in understanding.

"You are no longer on disciplinary action. But if you do not sleep a decent amount within the next forty eight hours I will have you taken to the infirmary and sedated," threatened the warden . Nicole nodded in understanding.

"Guard!" hollered the warden. When he appeared he was ordered to uncuff Nicole and escort her to Doctor Cahill's actual office and to leave her there till Cahill threw her out. The warden sighed to herself after they left. She figured Nicole was going to be the death of her.

* * *

The walk to Cahill's office was short. Cahill looked up from her paperwork when Nicole and her guard walked in. She motioned for Nicole to sit on the couch in front of her desk while the guard left the room, closing the door behind him. Nicole did as she was instructed. She laid her right arm on Cahill's desk and laid her head on it, using her left arm to prop it up.

"You look like hell kid," commented Cahill. Nicole hummed in agreement.

"Gonna tell me about the nightmares?" Silence. A noise on the desk got Nicole to look at Cahill. Cahill had put a open can of sprite in front of Nicole.

"I met your father. He seems like a good man, even when he tries to escape hospitals," said Cahill.

" He is, " said Nicole, taking a drink from the sprite.

"You two are a lot alike," said Cahill. Nicole looked confused .

"You two have similar personalities. Were your nightmares about his shooting? I know you saw it, but he doesn't. Would you like me to tell him?" asked Cahill.

"A few are, but they're not the worst, " answered Nicole. Cahill made a note to talk to Callen about his shooting and letting him know Nicole had saw it. He would be the best person to talk to her about those nightmares.

"Were they about your sister's death?" asked Cahill. She noticed Nicole tense up and swallow.

" After I gave that lecture, a girl named Riana came up to me. Said she wanted to write me because she thought I was sad and lonely. I gave her my info. She reminded me of Aoife, " said Nicole. It dawned on Cahill what happened and what the nightmares were. Nicole laid fully down on the couch.

"Don't tell me it's not my fault, Doc. Because I know it damn well is," said Nicole. Cahill braced herself for Nicole's reaction for what Cahill was about to say.

"Would Aoife have wanted you to blame yourself? Would she have allowed you to bottle up your emotions like you are and have been for years? " said Cahill. She watched a lone tear roll out of Nicole's closed eyes.

"She was innocent...and I got her killed. She had begged me to stop and I did. I promised her I would stop drugs. I broke that promise once and overdosed. Been clean...since. No, she wouldn't have blamed me..." said Nicole . Cahill went to say something, but the teenager was already asleep. Cahill didn't know it at that moment, but this would be the first of many times a Callen would pass out on her office couch.

* * *

 **AAnnouncements/Questions/Warnings- This is the longest chapter so far. The next few chapters are going to get dark, so I will probably change the rating. I do not know if I will update again before the new year. Cassie, Ruthie, and Grace will be back in the next chapter. More characters will be appearing. Do you want to see what Trish wrote Nicole? Would you like a Christmas chapter? Let me know what you think!**


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